Apparatus for patterning recording media

ABSTRACT

A method for patterning a recording medium selectively thermally couples a recording medium and a heat source to alter a chemical composition of the recording medium. An apparatus for patterning a recording medium has a heat source for generating and directing an incident thermal wave to a recording medium so as to alter a chemical composition of the recording medium, and a controller for coordinating a mutual position of the incident thermal wave and the recording medium for inducing a direct thermal coupling between the recording medium and the heat source.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] The present invention generally relates to patterned recordingmedia and a method of manufacturing the same, and more specifically topatterned recording media and a method of manufacturing the same usingselective thermal coupling.

[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art

[0004] In conventional magnetic recording systems, a written bit size isdefined by the dimensions of the recording head. A written domaincomprises several hundred magnetic grains. For example, for the highestrecording density products being introduced in the market today (20Gb/in²), the bit cell is about 620 nm×52 nm. To support such arealdensities, the microstructure of the recording media has been engineeredto consist of non-exchange coupled grains with grain diameters of about10 nm. Therefore, a recorded domain involves about 400 grains.

[0005] Therefore, one approach to achieving higher recording densitiesis to reduce the bit size and consequently the media grain size.However, this approach is limited because at a critical grain volume,the magnetic grains become thermally unstable and spontaneously switchmagnetization direction at normal operating temperatures due tosuperparamagnetism and are unable to maintain the magnetizationorientation imposed on them during the writing process. In addition, asthe number of grains is reduced, the noise arising from statisticalfluctuations in grain positions or orientation increase.

[0006] Another approach to increasing recording density is to modify themicrostructure of the media so that a bit is stored in a single grain,or a multiplicity of grains or magnetic clusters which are fullyexchange coupled within the recorded bit dimensions. This approach,commonly referred to as “magnetic media patterning” requires thatadjacent grains or clusters be magnetically isolated. This approach isperceived as a necessary means for extending magnetic recording to meetstorage densities in excess of 100 Gb/in².

[0007] Conventional methods of patterning magnetic media encompass awide variety of techniques ranging from conventional lithography, to theuse of particle and photon sources in combination with masks to producepatterned structures. For example. U.S. Pat. No. 6,168,845 to Fontana etal. (hereinafter “Fontana”) discloses a method of making patternedmagnetic media using selective oxidation. The Fontana method includesdepositing a layer of magnetic material on a substrate (e.g., aconventional nickel-phosphorus plated aluminum-magnesium substrate),covering portions of the magnetic layer with a protective mask thatdetermines the patterning of the non-magnetic zones, and exposing theprotective mask and the uncovered portions of the magnetic layer to anoxygen plasma. The oxygen plasma oxidizes the magnetic layer so that theuncovered portions have a reduced local magnetic moment. The result is apatterned magnetic medium with discrete magnetic and non-magnetic zones.

[0008] The utilization of ion beam implantation to achieve patternedmedia, has been disclosed in “Method for Spatially Modulating MagneticProperties Using Ion Beam Implantation”, J. Baglin. E. E. Marinero andK. Rubin, (AM9-98-096).

[0009] Such conventional methods aim to significantly alter the magneticproperties of the regions exposed to the particles, energy sources, ionsor reactive species. The areas of the magnetic material which wereprevented from exposure by the mask, exhibit different magneticproperties from the exposed areas and information can be recorded andretrieved by taking advantages of the differences in magnetic propertiesbetween these two different material regions.

[0010] However, these methods have several drawbacks that inhibit theiruse in magnetic media manufacturing applications. For example, a storagedensity of over 100 Gb/in² would require an exposure mask having afeature size of about 40 nm over large areas. In addition, the mask mustbe accurately aligned and positioned. Further, in the case of particleimplantation and reactive ion etching, the mask may have a shortlifetime because the impinging species are expected to be heated anddeposited on the non-transmissive areas of the mask. In short, thesemethods generally require additional hardware and/or processing stepswhich result in higher fabrication costs and longer manufacturing cycletimes.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0011] In view of the foregoing problems of the conventional techniques,an object of the present invention is to provide a structure and methodfor patterning recording media.

[0012] The inventive method includes selectively thermally coupling arecording medium and a heat source to alter a chemical composition ofthe recording medium. The chemical composition may be altered accordingto a predetermined pattern, such as concentric circles or paralleltracks.

[0013] Further, altering the chemical composition may causes an alteredmagnetic order of the recording medium an altered dielectric constant ofthe recording medium, an altered electrical conductivity of saidrecording medium, or an altered thermal conductivity of said recordingmedium. Further, altering the dielectric constant may cause an alteredreflectivity of the recording medium. In addition, altering anelectrical conductivity may cause an altered electron transport propertyof the recording medium.

[0014] Further, selectively thermally coupling may include selectivelydirecting an incident thermal wave to the recording medium to form adirect thermal coupling between the heat source and the recordingmedium.

[0015] The inventive method may also include depositing the recordingmedium on a substrate. Further, the medium may include cobalt andchromium, and the substrate may include glass, silicon, quartz,sapphire, AlMg or a ceramic substrate. More specifically, the medium mayinclude Co_(x)Cr_(1-x), where x is in a range from 0.63 to 0.75.

[0016] In addition, the heat source may include a near-field thermalprobe or a nanoheater. The heat source may or may not physically contactthe recording medium.

[0017] More specifically, the chemical composition may be altered by oneof interfacial mixing, interfacial reactions, selective oxidation,structural relaxation, phase segregation and phase change. In addition,altering the chemical composition may transform the medium from aparamagnetic medium to a ferromagnetic medium, or it may transform themedium from a ferromagnetic medium to a paramagnetic medium.

[0018] Further, altering the chemical composition may alter a magneticaxis orientation of the medium or it may reduce magnetization orcoercivity of the medium. Furthermore, selectively thermally couplingmay include selective near-field radiative coupling of blackbodyradiation from the heat source to the recording medium. In addition,thermal energy may be transferred to the medium by conductive heating orby radiative heating.

[0019] The present invention also includes an inventive apparatus forpatterning a recording medium. The inventive apparatus includes a heatsource for generating and directing an incident thermal wave to arecording medium, the thermal wave altering a chemical composition of arecording medium, and a controller for coordinating a mutual position ofthe incident thermal wave and the recording medium so as to thermallycouple the heat source and the recording medium.

[0020] Further, the heat source may include, for example, a nanoheater,a near field thermal probe or an atomic force thermal probe. Inaddition, the heat source may include a heating plate for developing athermal energy which couples the heat source to the recording medium,and a heat sink connected to the heating plate. The heating plate mayinclude, for example, a tip for concentrating and directing a thermalenergy.

[0021] The heat source may be heated, for example, by a resistiveheating element thermally coupled to the heat sink. Alternatively, theheat source in the inventive apparatus may be heated by using an opticalwaveguide coupled to the heat sink, for carrying a focused laser beam.The optical waveguide may include, for example, an optical fiber. Theoptical waveguide may be, for example, a planar optical waveguide.

[0022] An especially efficient embodiment of the present inventionincludes an inventive read/write head assembly, which includes aread/write head, a heat source connected to the read/write head forgenerating and directing an incident thermal wave to a recording medium,the thermal wave altering a chemical composition of a recording medium,and a controller for coordinating a mutual position of the incidentthermal wave and the recording medium so as to thermally couple the heatsource and the recording medium. For example, the chemical compositionmay be altered according to a predetermined pattern, and the heat sourcemay pattern the recording medium during a read/write operation of theread/write head assembly.

[0023] The present invention also includes an inventive patternedrecording medium which includes a substrate, and a single layer mediumformed on the substrate having a portion which has been patterned byaltering a chemical composition of the medium using selective thermalcoupling.

[0024] Furthermore, the present invention includes a method formanufacturing a patterned magnetic disk which includes depositing arecording medium on a substrate, selectively thermally coupling therecording medium and a heat source so as to alter a chemical compositionof the recording medium, and depositing a protective coating on therecording medium.

[0025] Thus, with the unique and unobvious features of the invention, asimple, versatile method for manufacturing patterned recording media isprovided which requires no lithographic masks or additional processingsteps. Further, the inventive patterned recording medium is thin andsubstantially smooth to better facilitate a read/write operation, and anapparatus for patterning recording medium is simple and inexpensive andmay be incorporated into a conventional read/write assembly with littlealteration of the read/write assembly.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] The foregoing and other objects, aspects and advantages will bebetter understood from the following detailed description of a preferredembodiment of the invention with reference to the drawings, in which:

[0027]FIG. 1 is a flow diagram illustrating a method 100 for patterningrecording media according to the present invention;

[0028] FIGS. 2A-2B illustrate an inventive apparatus 200 for patterningrecording media according to the present invention;

[0029]FIG. 3 illustrates a near-field thermal probe that may be used asa heat source in a method 100 for patterning recording media accordingto the present invention;

[0030] FIGS. 4A-4D illustrate alternative structures of a heating plateof a near-field thermal probe that may be used as a heat sourceaccording to the present invention;

[0031] FIGS. 5A-5C illustrates alternative structures of a heat sink ofa near-field thermal probe that may be used as a heat source accordingto the present invention;

[0032] FIGS. 6A-6C illustrates alternative structures for heating a nearfield thermal probe that may be used as a heat source according to thepresent invention;

[0033]FIG. 7 illustrates a recording media patterning apparatus 700incorporated into a read/write head assembly for patterning a recordingmedia according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

[0034] Referring now to the drawings, FIG. 1 is a flowchart illustratinga method 100 of manufacturing patterned recording media according to thepresent invention.

[0035] The inventive method 100 achieves nanoscale material alterationsin the chemical composition of a recording medium by selectivelythermally coupling the recording medium to a heat source. Thesethermally-induced alterations in chemical composition may include, forexample, interfacial mixing, selective oxidation, structural relaxation,interface chemical reactions, magnetic relaxation, phase segregation andphase transformations. Such transformations result in significantchanges in magnetic properties of the areas exposed to the thermalpulse. The inventive method, therefore, provides a simple, versatiletechnique for manufacturing patterned recording media which requires nolithographic masks or additional processing steps.

[0036] Further, altering the chemical composition may cause thesubjected areas of the recording medium to have, for example, an alteredmagnetic order (e.g., altered magnetic axis orientation, magnetizationor coercivity), an altered dielectric constant, an altered electricalconductivity or an altered thermal conductivity. Further, the altereddielectric constant may cause an altered reflectivity of the recordingmedium. In addition, the altered electrical conductivity may cause analtered electron transport property of the recording medium.

[0037] For example, altering the chemical composition may transform aninitially (i.e., before thermal coupling) paramagnetic medium to aferromagnetic medium.

[0038] Similarly, altering the chemical composition may transform aninitially ferromagnetic medium to a paramagnetic medium.

[0039] In other words, unlike conventional methods which treat amagnetic medium to reduce its magnetic properties, the inventive method100 does not require that the medium be initially magnetic. Instead, theinventive method uses a medium having a chemical composition that isalterable by selective thermal coupling. The areas of the medium inwhich the chemical composition has been altered by selective thermalcoupling may be made to have higher magnetic properties than areas inwhich the chemical composition has not been altered, or lower magneticproperties than areas in which the chemical composition has not beenaltered.

[0040] The inventive method 100 may also include depositing therecording medium on a substrate. Generally, the substrate can be anyconventional substrate on which a recording medium can be deposited,such as glass, silicon, quartz, sapphire, ALMg, or a ceramic material.One common conventional substrate which may be used isaluminum-magnesium alloy substrate coated with a nickel-phosphoruslayer. Furthermore, in the inventive method 100, the recording mediummay be deposited on the substrate by any conventional means. Forexample, the medium may be deposited by sputtering, ion beam depositionor thermal deposition.

[0041] Further, the recording medium may include conventional materials.For example, conventional magnetic materials such as nickel, cobalt oriron alloys may be deposited. The medium may also include, for example,BaTiO₃, T_(c)=120° C.). PbTiO₃ (T_(c)=490° C.). lead iron niobate(T_(c)=112° C.), tri-glycine sulphate (T_(c)=49° C.), or NaKC₄H₄O₆.4H₂O,etc.. However, as noted above, the inventive method 100 does not requirethat the medium be magnetic, but merely that the medium have a chemicalcomposition alterable by selective thermal coupling.

[0042] In addition, although conventional substrates and media may beused, the inventors have discovered that non-conventional materials maybe used with better results than those derived from conventionalmaterials. For example, the inventive method may use a substrate ofglass or aluminum-magnesium alloy coated with carbon. Further, anon-conventional recording medium may include a cobalt chromiumcompound. Specifically, the medium may include Co_(x)Cr_(1-x), where xis in a range from 0.63 to 0.75. For instance. Co₆₃Cr₃₇ may be used.Note that Co₆₃Cr₃₇ is paramagnetic but can be thermally transformed to aferromagnetic material.

[0043] Other characteristics of the substrate and recording medium mayvary depending on the types of materials used. Generally, the substrateshould be rigid and substantially heat resistant. The recording mediumshould have a thickness in a range of about 1.0 to 500 nm and have achemical composition that is alterable by selective thermal coupling.

[0044] Referring again to FIG. 1, the inventive method 100 selectivelythermally couples (110) the recording medium to the heat source so as toalter the chemical composition of the medium. Specifically, an incidentthermal wave is directed from the heat source to the recording medium toform a thermal coupling between the heat source and the recordingmedium. The recording medium may be selectively thermally coupled so asto form areas of medium having an altered chemical composition, andareas of medium where the chemical composition is unchanged by thethermal coupling. In other words, the medium may be selectivelythermally coupled to the heat source according, for example, to apattern (e.g., a predetermined pattern such as concentric circles (e.g.,on a disk-shaped recording medium) or parallel tracks (e.g., on amagnetic tape)) so as to “pattern” the medium. Further, the heat sourcemay or may not physically contact the recording medium, so long asthermal coupling is attained between the heat source and the recordingmedium.

[0045] As mentioned above, the interaction of a heat source with therecording medium induces a localized temperature rise that leads to analtered chemical composition in the area of the recording medium whichis subject to the thermal coupling. Such thermally-inducedtransformations may include, for instance, interfacial mixing. Forinstance, the structure of conventional recording media may consist of aplurality of layers with different functionalities. Domains aretypically recorded on either a single magnetic layer or in a multilayerstack (the storage layer) within this plurality of layers. At elevatedtemperatures, interfacial mixing between the storage layer and the otherancillary layers or within the ultra-thin layers of a multi-layerstorage layer, leads to stoichiometric changes, nearest neighbordistance changes that alter the magnetocrystalline anisotropy, themagnetization and coercivity of the storage layer.

[0046] Such thermally-induced transformations may also includeinterfacial reactions. Localized heating can also result in theformation of new chemical species as the storage layer constituentsreact with the atomic species of the ancillary top and bottom layers orwithin the ultra-thin layers of the multilayer storage layer. Once more,the effect is to alter the stoichiometry of the storage layer which mayresult, for example, in changes in magnetic properties of the recordingmedium.

[0047] Another thermally-induced transformation may include oxidation.The temperature rise induced by the heat source can permit the efficientoxidation of the storage layer in a reducing atmosphere. This is favoredin structures for recording, because the magnetic layers and underlayerssuch as a carbon overcoat are ultra thin (e.g., typically within a rangeof about 1 to 10 nm) The diffusion length of oxygen at temperatures over200° C. permits the rapid diffusion of atmospheric oxygen, for example,through the carbon overcoat. Upon reaching the storage layer, oxidationwill proceed from the most reactive atomic constituent to the most nobleone. The extent of the oxidation is controlled by the temperature rise,the pulse duration and both the overcoat and the storage layerthickness.

[0048] For example, oxidation may result in dramatic changes in magneticproperties of the storage layer. The inventors have conductedexperiments in which oxidation transformation was observed. In theseexperiments, paramagnetic layers of Co₆₃Cr₃₇ were directly deposited onglass and aluminum-magnesium substrates and overcoated with 4 nm thickcarbon overcoats. The samples were then annealed utilizing a rapidthermal annealing apparatus in an oxygen containing atmosphere.Comparative studies were also done in a nitrogen atmosphere. Prior toannealing, it was confirmed by magnetometry that the thin films wereparamagnetic. Annealing in the oxygen containing atmosphere produced aferromagnetic material with out-of-plane magnetic anisotropy. Incontrast, annealing in a nitrogen environment resulted only in a veryweak magnetic response. For example, in the case of Co₆₃Cr₃₇, chromiumhas the highest chemical affinity to oxygen and, therefore, preferentialchromium oxidation occurs upon exposure of the film to oxygen.Consequently, by selectively thermally coupling a medium includingCo₆₃Cr₃₇ according to the inventive method, a film structure can beproduced which includes magnetic islands imbedded in a paramagneticmatrix.

[0049] To avoid lateral heat spread and therefore a loss in spatialresolution, the film is preferably thin (e.g., less than about 10 nm)and deposited on underlayers with higher thermal conductivity than therecording film. Orientation of the magnetic axis is achieved by growingthe paramagnetic thin film on a suitable underlayer which places thebasal plane of the hexagonal-closely-packed (HCP) unit cell eitherparallel (i.e., perpendicular recording) or orthogonal (i.e.,longitudinal recording) to the film plane.

[0050] Another thermally-induced transformation may include magneticrelaxation. The coercivity and anisotropy in magnetic amorphousmaterials strongly depend on the local order, i.e., the internal stressand the local environment. Annealing above the effective growthtemperature leads to relaxation effects of the local order and internalstress resulting in changes in magnetic properties. This is generallyknown as magnetic relaxation. For example, in the case of TbFeCoferromagnetic materials, the inventors have shown that nanosecond laserannealing causes the magnetic axis orientation to flip from theout-of-plane to an in-plane geometry. At higher laser powers (i.e.,higher annealing temperatures) the inventors discovered that theferromagnetic response of the irradiated area was lost and the materialbecame paramagnetic.

[0051] Another thermally-induced transformation may include phasesegregation and phase transformation. Changes in crystalline phases orthe segregation of a secondary phase induced by selective thermalcoupling also cause profound changes in magnetic properties. This caninclude magnetic anisotropy losses, saturation, remanent momentdecrements, and formation of a paramagnetic phase. The heat source canalso be effective in achieving such phase changes in nanoscaledimensions and hence enabling media patterning based on such physicalchanges.

[0052] More specifically, the inventive method 100 selectively thermallycouples the recording medium to a heat source so as to alter a chemicalcomposition of the recording medium on a microscopic scale. Generally,the inventive method 100 accomplishes this by positioning a very smallheat source very close to the recording medium. The selective thermalcoupling (110) may, therefore, be limited to an area very near the heatsource and the recording medium can be effectively patterned byrepositioning the heat source according to the desired pattern.

[0053] Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 2A, the present invention may alsoinclude a media patterning apparatus 200. The inventive apparatus 200may include a heat source 210 for generating and directing an incidentthermal wave to the recording medium 220, so as to alter the chemicalcomposition of the recording medium 220. The heat source 210 mayinclude, for example, a nanoheater, near-field thermal probe, an atomicforce microscope probe, or other structure for generating and directinga thermal wave at the recording medium 220.

[0054] The inventive media patterning apparatus 200 may also include,for example, a controller 215 for coordinating mutual positioning of theincident thermal wave generated by the heat source 210 and the recordingmedium 220 so as to thermally couple the heat source 210 and therecording medium 220. A suitable such controller 215 may include anactuator 225 which may include, for example, a piezo-electric actuator,an electro-static actuator, an electro-magnetic actuator, amagnetic-strictive actuator, or a thermal-mechanical actuator

[0055] The inventive recording media patterning apparatus 200 may alsoinclude a heat source controller 230 for enabling heat source control.In order to control the patterning process, the heat source 210 shouldbe controlled precisely. The heating may be controlled, for example, bymodulating a laser (e.g., liquid crystal, Bragg cell, current modulationetc.) if a laser is used or by simply modulating the supplied current ifresistive heating is implemented.

[0056] As explained above, the media patterning apparatus 200 mayutilize a heat source 210 to achieve nanoscale material transformations(i.e., interfacial mixing, etc.) in a recording medium 220 byselectively thermally coupling the recording medium 220 to the heatsource 210. The thermally coupled areas may thereby be made to havealtered chemical compositions resulting in higher or lower magneticproperties than areas that were not subjected to thermal coupling. Theinventive apparatus 200, therefore, provides a simple, versatiletechnique for manufacturing patterned recording media which requires nolithographic masks or additional processing steps.

[0057] More specifically, as shown in FIG. 2B, the heat source 210generates and directs an incident thermal wave to the recording medium220. To form the thermal coupling, the heat source 210 should be inclose proximity to the recording medium 220 (e.g., a distance of lessthan about 20 nm). As noted above, the selective thermal coupling of therecording medium 220 is isolated to those areas near the heat source210. For example, the temperature of the heat source 210 may betypically greater than 75 degrees C. for a duration of less than 1second.

[0058] As explained above, the selective thermal coupling results inareas of the recording medium 220 having an altered chemical composition(i.e., altered areas) 230, and areas of the recording medium 220 inwhich the chemical composition is unaltered (i.e., unaltered areas) 240.Note that, as shown in FIG. 2B, the heat source 210 may have a circularprofile which would result in a circular profile of the altered areas230, or the heater 210 may have a profile other than circular whichwould affect the profile of the altered areas 230 accordingly.

[0059] Further, as noted above, the heat source 210 used to generate anddirect an incident thermal wave to the recording medium 220 may include,for example, a nanoheater. In this case, the tip of the nanoheatershould be positioned, for example, at a distance less than about 20 nmfrom the recording medium. Thermal energy may be transferred from thenanoheater to the recording medium 220, for example, by conductiveheating (i.e., diffusion of energy due to random molecular motion).Further, the heat source 210 may transfer thermal energy to therecording medium 220 by radiative heating.

[0060] In addition, as shown in FIG. 3, the heat source in the inventiveapparatus 200 may include a near field thermal probe 305 for generatingand directing the thermal wave to the recording medium. As shown in FIG.3, a suitable near-field thermal probe 305 may include, for example, aheating plate 330 for directing thermal energy at the recording medium320, and a heat sink 340 which is attached to the heating plate 330. Theprobe 305 is capable of developing a thermal near-field coupling withthe recording medium 320. Further, as shown in FIG. 2A, when the heatsource 210 includes a near field thermal probe 305, the controller 215functions so that the coupling subsumes at least one portion of thethermal near-field.

[0061] As shown in FIG. 3, the near field thermal probe 305 having a tip310 interacts via its thermal near-field with a recording medium 320.The tip 310 may be, for example, spherical having a radius R as shown inFIG. 3. For purposes of the present invention, the thermal near-fieldregion is the area generally within approximately 2R away from the tip310. The rest of the area on the surface of the recording medium 320 isgenerally considered far-field. Therefore, thermal energy may betransferred from the near field thermal probe 305 to the recordingmedium 320 via selective near-field radiative coupling of blackbodyradiation from the probe 305 to the recording medium 320.

[0062] In the near-field region of the recording medium 320, the extentof the thermal energy is generally governed by the tip 310 dimensions.Therefore, if the tip 310 is brought within approximately 2R (i.e., twotimes the radius of the tip of the near-field thermal probe) of therecording medium 320, very local, nanoscale heating of the recordingmedium 320 can be achieved. A heated area of the recording medium 320can thereby be determined by the tip 310 dimensions.

[0063] In this particular application of heat flow, in the far-field theheat is transferred via diffusion as well as via radiation according tothe Stefan-Boltzmann law. In the near-field, a ballistic heat flow,where a gas molecule picks up some energy form the heater and transfersit without collisions to the media as well as heat conduction vianon-propagating waves, are important. It is also noted thatcontamination layers on the surface may contribute significant heat flowas well as intermittent contact between the heat source and the medium.

[0064] More particularly, thermal energy may be transferred to the nearfield thermal probe 305 using for example, a resistive element which isthermally coupled to the heat sink 340. Alternatively, the inventiveapparatus 200 may include an optical waveguide which is coupled to theheat sink 340 for carrying a focused laser beam. The optical waveguidemay include, for example, a planar optical waveguide. The opticalwaveguide may include an optical fiber.

[0065] Attention is now directed to FIGS. 4A-D, which help illustratethe many different geometrical, dimensional, and material configurationswhich may be suitably adapted for a particular realization of thenear-field thermal probe.

[0066] In overview of the near-field thermal probes of FIGS. 4A-D, it isnoted that their purpose is to transfer heat energy to the recordingmedium 320. This energy can be almost any kind; e.g., coherent ornon-coherent excitons, plasmons, phonons, photons, etc., and it can bedelivered in any mode (e.g., convective, radiative, or conductivetransfer) from the heat source to the medium 320. The heat transfer (seeJ. B. Xu, K. L-uger. R. M-ller. K Dransfeld. I. H. Wilsom. J. Appl.Phys., 76, 7209 (1994)) is generally diffusive if the mean free path ofmolecules λ is much less than the distance of the heater to media, d.However, if d<λ, the molecules in the junction go from the heat sourceto the medium without collisions, and transfer the heat in a ballisticmanner. In addition, in the far-field heat can be transferred viapropagating radiation according to the Stefan-Boltzmann law.Furthermore, non-propagating waves (near-field) are capable oftransferring the heat via a tunneling process when heat source andmedium are very close to each other (near-field region). From a physicspoint of view, the charges within the near-field thermal probe arethermally excited, which generate a significant driving field of thethermal probe. This driving field generates, consequently, a near-fieldof the probe, which couples to the recording medium 320, and thus heatsthe recording medium 320. It is noted that this effect can be maximizedby using a resistive conductor (such as carbon). In addition, thiseffect can be enhanced by implementing an elongated shape as well as avery small end radius of the probe. Good geometrical conductors for thethermal probe may include rectangular or cylindrical design, of the typeshown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, respectively.

[0067] For example, the preferred dimensions of y₁ and z₁ (FIG. 4A) orr₁ (FIG. 4B) are informed by the way the thermal energy is to bedeposited. For instance, if one uses a focused laser beam to heat up theheating plate 410, 415, y₁ and z₁ or r₁ preferably are larger than thewaist of the laser focus (e.g., for a numerical aperture of 0.8 y₁, z₁,r₁ greater than 0.8 micrometer). If, on the other hand, one uses awave-guided laser beam, then the heating plate 410, 415 preferably isattached right onto the end of a fiber (e.g., via vapor deposition).Therefore, the heating plate 415 preferably has a cylindrical shape, andr₁ is determined by the wave-guide size. More specifically, for a singlemode fiber in the visible wavelength range, r₁ preferably isapproximately 3-4 micrometer. If one uses tapered fiber, r₁ preferablyis larger than or equal λ≈/2, where λ is the wavelength of the utilizedlaser light. If, alternatively, one uses resistive heating, then onechooses, most likely, a rectangular shape, and the dimensions arepreferably dominated by the connections and the resulting resistance.

[0068] In the case of resistive heating, these dimensions can be rathersmall (e.g., y₁, z₁ less than 0.1 micrometer) if they are made viae-beam lithography. Further, in the case of resistive heating, thedimensions as well as the material determine the actual resistance, andhence the heating.

[0069] While the y₁, z₁, r₁ dimensions are determined mostly bypractical needs, the thickness of the heating plate 410, 415 itselfshould be rather small (e.g., d₁l x₁ less than 0.5 micrometer), forexample, if the device is to be used for high speed patterning. Morespecifically, in high speed applications, one preferably uses energypulses to deposit the heat in the heating plate, so as to subsequentlyheat up the near-field heat source, e.g., a tip or an edge of theheating plate.

[0070] In addition, in order to heat up again, the deposited heat (e.g.,from a last pulse), has to be dissipated. This dissipation is governedby the thermal diffusion length l=(κ·τ)^(0.5), where κ is the thermaldiffusivity and τ is the time after the arrival of a heat pulse.Specifically, the heat in a good thermal conductor (approximatelyK=2·10⁻⁵ m²s⁻¹) can diffuse a distance of 0.45 micrometer in only 10 ns.corresponding to recording rates of 100 MHz. If one uses a laser beam todeposit the heat, it is noted that the heating plate 410, 415 preferablyshould at least have a thickness of the skin depth at the laserfrequency. Specifically, for a very high absorbing material (e.g.. Al)it preferably is larger than 10 nm at 633 nm.

[0071] The heating plate 410, 415 can be made out of any material, butin general the following requirements preferably exist: (1) the materialpreferably has a high melting point (T>1100 K), generally higher thanthe temperature necessary to thermally anneal the medium 320 andtherefore, pattern the medium 320; (2) the material preferably has ahigh thermal diffusivity (K>1·10⁻⁵ m²s⁻¹, e.g., metals and alloys); (3)the material preferably is high absorbing if a laser is used for theheating (e.g., Cr, Al),; (4) if the heating plate operates as the heatsource, a resistive conductor may be preferred, especially in order tomaximize the heat transfer from the heat source to the recording medium320 via near-field coupling.

[0072] As explained above, a generic purpose of the heat plate operatingas a heat source is to guide the thermal energy to the medium 320. Itshould be noted that if unrestricted, the heating plate is capable ofthermally annealing the medium. Therefore, the heat source must becontrolled to avoid general heating from the heating plate, and toinstead focus the thermal energy to a very small point. An attendant andnovel property is then to generate a thermal near-field, which caninteract very locally, preferably on a nanometer scale, with the medium.To this end, the heating plate operating as a heat source can have allkinds of shapes and dimensions. For example, as shown in FIG. 4C, theheat source 425 may be just an edge of a heating plate 420 or, as shownin FIG. 4D, the heat source 425 may be a truncated cone of a heatingplate 430. Further, as shown in FIG. 4D, the heat source may beprotected by some low heat conducting material 435 (e.g., glass).Further, an edge or tip material is preferably governed by the samegeneral material requirements as that of the heating plate itself.

[0073] Overall, the shape and dimensions of the heating plate operatingas a heat source are influenced by the following requirements. First,for high speed application, a designer preferably chooses a shape anddimensions which transfer the heat as fast as possible. Thus, a heatsource preferably should have a small length b (e.g., b less than 0.5micrometer), in order to achieve sufficient heat dissipation within itsthermal diffusion length. If one just considers high speed applications,one may be tempted to choose large dimensions of a and c, as shown inFIG. 4C, and a and b, as shown in FIG. 4D, in order to avoid a slowone-dimensional heat conduction.

[0074] Secondly, however, besides high speed, a heat source preferablyprovides a very local heating, avoiding any stray heat from the heatingplate, generally. Accordingly, this correlates with oppositerequirements for the dimensions. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4C, for avery local heating, b should preferably be large (e.g., more than 0.1micrometer), and the dimensions a and c should be small (e.g., less than0.01 micrometer), and as shown in FIG. 4D, dimensions a and α should besmall (e.g., a less than 0.1 micrometer, and α less than 15°). It shouldbe noted that power loss increases with decreasing dimensions in a, c(in FIG. 4C) and a, α (in FIG. 4D), which may result in insufficient andvery ineffective heating.

[0075] Thirdly, the shape and dimensions of the heat source arepreferably matched to a bit size and a bit pattern. In general, the bitsare typically larger or equal to the dimensions of a heat source. Forexample, as shown in FIG. 4C, for a 20 nm bit, a heat source shouldpreferably have the dimensions a, c which are much smaller than 20 nm.

[0076] Fourth, in order to maximize the thermal near-field coupling (asoutlined above), an elongated shape with a sharp tip-like point may bepreferred.

[0077] Furthermore, as mentioned above, in addition to the heatingplate, the near-field thermal probe includes a second element, namely, aheat sink attached to the heating plate. An important purpose of theheat sink is to dissipate deposited heat as fast as possible in order toget ready for a new heating pulse.

[0078] Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5A, the heat sink is preferablyattached to the heating plate in such a way that the heat conductionbetween heat sink 510 and heating plate 520 is as good as possible(K>1·10⁻⁵ m²s⁻¹). Therefore, it may be very advantageous if the heatsink and the heating plate are made out of the same material. In othercases, the heat sink may be welded, glued, or deposited (via e-beam,vapor, sputtering etc.) right on the heating plate.

[0079] Dimensions and shapes for the heat sink are not very critical (infact, the heat sink may be integrally formed with the heat plate).Therefore, only guidelines can be given here. In general the heat sinkcan have all kinds of shapes. However, as shown in FIGS. 5B and 5C, intypical cases, it may be rectangular or cylindrical. To provide asufficient heat sink mass, the heat sink may be very large. Largedimensions (e.g., more than 1 micrometer) of y₂, z₂ and r₂ may result ina three-dimensional heat flow greatly enhancing the speed for heatdissipation. The dimensions and the shape of the heat sink do not haveto necessarily match the dimensions of the attached heating plate.However in general the heat sink preferably has dimensions larger orequal to the heating plate (e.g., y₂≧y₁, z₂≧z₁, r₂≧r₁). In terms of thethickness of the heat sink, we note that d₂ and x₂ should preferably beat least the thermal diffusion length l for a given heating repetitionrate l\t (where t is time in seconds). The material of the heat sourcecan be almost any kind. In analogy to the heating plate and the heat tipor edge, the material of the heat sink preferably has a high meltingpoint as well as a high heat conductivity. However, in some cases thematerial should not be high absorbing at the laser wavelength, forexample, if the laser has to be focused on the heating plate through theheat sink material. In such case, a transparent material (e.g., diamond)should preferably be used, which is still a good heat conductor and hasa high melting point.

[0080] As mentioned above, the near-field thermal probe uses the idea ofdirect thermal coupling between a heat source and a medium, and thatthis coupling can subsume far-field and/or near-field effects. Inparticular, near-field effects may include a continuum that may extendfrom coupling that subsumes at least one portion of the thermalnear-field; ranging e.g., from partially inclusive, to substantially oreven complete coupling in the thermal near-field.

[0081] Furthermore, as shown in FIGS. 6A-C, there are different ways ofsupplying thermal energy to (i.e., heating) the near field thermalprobe. For instance. FIG. 6A shows a focused laser beam embodiment,wherein a focused laser beam 605 is brought through a heat sink 610 ontoa heating plate 620. In this case, the heat sink material may be, forexample, diamond which is transparent and has an excellent heatconductivity. An alternative material could be Si, for example, if aninfrared laser is used. The heating plate 620 can be very thin (e.g.,about 0.1 micrometer) if a high absorbing material is used (e.g., Al.Cr.). Directly attached to the heating plate 620 is a heat tip orfeature 630, which preferably is short (e.g., less than about 0.3micrometer). The material of the heat tip or feature 630 may be, forexample, Cr or At. Further, the heat tip or feature 630 may be protectedwith a low heat conducting material, such as glass.

[0082]FIG. 6B shows an alternative embodiment comprising a wave-guidedlaser beam 640 used for the heating. In this embodiment, a heat sink645, which may be made, for example, out of diamond, may be directlyattached to the end of a fiber 650. In other cases, a metal coating(e.g., Al) of the wave-guide can be used as the heat sink. Thewave-guide laser beam 640 is absorbed by a thin (e.g., less than 0.1micrometer) heating plate 655 directly attached to the fiber or heatsink. A material such as Cr or Al may be advantageous, because they havegenerally a small penetration depth (e.g., less than 0.02 micrometer). Aheat source or tip 660 can be, for example, aluminum and form an edge ora little probe attached to the heating plate 655. In such a design, theheat source or tip may have a length, for example, of less than about0.3 micrometers.

[0083]FIG. 6C shows a further alternative embodiment wherein resistiveheat 665 may be used to heat a heating plate 670. In addition thetransmission lines could be formed of a metal such as Cu and used as aheat sink 675. The two transmission lines are separated by anon-conducting material, for example, diamond or glass. Diamond has anadvantage, in that it is a very good heat conductor, and can assist the,heat sink 675. The two transmission lines are connected via the heatingplate 670, which can act as a heating source. The heating plate 670 canbe very small (e.g., less than 0.05 micrometer). As a material forheating plate and the heat source, tungsten or carbon may be verysuitable, because of its resistance and high melting point.

[0084] In addition, as mentioned above, the near-field thermal probe maybe, for example, an atomic force microscope probe (AFM). AFMs aregenerally discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,343,993, incorporated byreference herein. For purposes of the present invention, the AFM'scantilever can function as a heating plate and heat sink. Thus, a laserfocused onto the cantilever (heating plate) can be used to heat up theprobe. An AFM probe can also be heated by resistive heating.

[0085] Hence, the inventors found that local heating of a medium may beachieved by bringing a heated element in close proximity, for example,within about 10 to 20 nm of a medium surface. For small coupling gaps inthe 10 to 20 nm range, the dominant mechanism of heat transfer is due tonear-field radiative coupling of the blackbody radiation from the heatsource to the medium surface. Experiments have shown, that for a siliconheater, heated to 600 C., a medium on a glass disk can be heated to 200C. at a gap spacing of around 5 nm and over a spatial region of 15 nm×15nm. The typical power flow over this area is on the order of 3microwatts. The transfer efficiency can be further improved byoptimizing the resistivity of the heater and the effective resistivityof the medium surface (which may include a carbon overcoat). Theresistivity should be chosen to be around 10-30 ohm-m or (4πkBT−0)/h.

[0086] Second Embodiment

[0087] In addition, as shown in FIG. 7, in an especially efficientembodiment, an inventive apparatus 700 for patterning a recording mediumaccording to the present invention may be incorporated into a read/writehead assembly 725 so that patterning can be readily performed during anoperation of the read/write head assembly 725 such as, for example,during a file formatting operation. For instance, in this embodiment,the heat source 710 (e.g., a nanoheater, near-field thermal probe, oratomic force microscope probe) may be mounted with the slider 730 on theread/write assembly 725. This greatly simplifies the precision thatwould be required to locate, for example, the near-field thermal probeand magnetic writing and recording heads over the same physical areas.

[0088] As with the inventive apparatus 200 illustrated in FIG. 2A, theinventive apparatus 700 may include a heat source controller forcontrolling the intensity of the thermal wave generated by the heatsource 210. Further, the inventive apparatus 700 may also include acontroller for coordinating mutual positioning of the incident thermalwave generated by the heat source 710 and the recording medium 720 so asto thermally couple the heat source 710 and the recording medium 720.Such a controller may be, for example, the same controller whichcontrols the position of the read/write head assembly 725, for example,during a read/write operation.

[0089] More specifically, in this embodiment the heat source 710 may befabricated using thin film techniques as a part of the slider 730 whichcontains the existing read/write element. In order to avoid themagnetoresistive read/write element being damaged from excessivetemperature rise from the heat source 710, a resistive heater elementshould be made from a thin film of material with low thermalconductivity (typically around 1 to 2 w/mK DLC or 80/20 Ni/Cr) and thensurrounded by an insulating material with a thermal conductivity whichis 10 times higher (e.g., alumina). Such a design would help localizethe temperature increase to the heater region of the slider therebyavoiding damage to the read/write element.

[0090] In addition, it should be noted that patterning recording mediausing this embodiment of the inventive apparatus 700 requires noadditional processing steps regarding the storage layer architecture, orpost-processing setups such as wet or dry etching cycles. Consequently,patterning the recording medium 720 using the inventive apparatus 700results in no topological changes in the recording medium 720 that couldinterfere with low read/write head flyability requirements. It shouldalso be noted that the lateral spreading of the heat on the recordingmedium 720 surface is negligible because the heater only dwells at agiven area on the rotating disk for a time typically less than about 1ns.

[0091] Furthermore, referring again to FIG. 2B, the present inventionmay include a recording medium 220 which is patterned by selectivethermal coupling. As shown in the FIG. 2B, the inventive patternedrecording medium 220 may include altered (e. g., altered chemicalcomposition) areas 230 of and non-altered areas 240 according to apattern (e.g., a predetermined pattern). The altered areas 230 and thenon-altered areas 240 should have a different chemical composition as aresult of the thermal coupling step discussed with respect to theinventive method 100 above. Note that, as mentioned above, the profileof the altered areas depends, for example, upon the profile of heater.For example, as shown in FIG. 2B, the heat source 210 may have acircular profile which would result in a circular profile of the alteredareas 230, or the heat source 210 may have a profile other than circular(e.g., square, triangular, rectangular. etc.) which would affect theprofile of the altered areas 230 accordingly.

[0092] More specifically, the patterned recording medium 220 mayinclude, for example, a substrate as described in detail above, and asingle layer of recording medium material, as described in detail above.In other words, the inventive patterned recording medium 220 does notrequire a storage layer structure as required by some conventional mediaand is, therefore, thinner than some conventional patterned recordingmedia. In addition, the inventive method of patterning recording medialeads to no topological changes so that the inventive patternedrecording medium may have a surface that is substantially smooth. Forexample, the inventive patterned recording medium 220 does not have anisland structure which is present in some conventional patterned media.

[0093] Further, the recording medium 220 may include a protectivecoating to protect the recording medium 220. The protective coating maybe formed, for example, of a plastic material which is uniformly appliedover the surface of the recording medium 220.

[0094] In addition, the present invention may include a programmablestorage medium tangibly embodying a program of machine-readableinstructions executable by a digital processing apparatus to perform theinventive method 100 as explained above.

[0095] Thus, the present invention provides a simple, versatile methodfor manufacturing patterned recording media which requires nolithographic masks or additional processing steps, an inventivepatterned recording medium which is thin and substantially smooth tobetter facilitate a read/write operation, and an apparatus forpatterning recording medium which is simple and inexpensive and may beincorporated into a conventional read/write assembly with littlealteration of the read/write assembly.

[0096] While the invention has been described in terms of preferredembodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that the inventioncan be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of theappended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of patterning a recording medium comprising: selectively thermally coupling said recording medium and a heat source to alter a chemical composition of said recording medium.
 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein said chemical composition is altered according to a predetermined pattern.
 3. The method according to claim 2, wherein said predetermined pattern comprises one of concentric circles and parallel tracks.
 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein altering said chemical composition causes an altered magnetic order of said recording medium.
 5. The method according to claim 1, wherein altering said chemical composition causes an altered dielectric constant of said recording medium.
 6. The method according to claim 5, wherein altering said dielectric constant causes an altered reflectivity of said recording medium.
 7. The method according to claim 1, wherein altering said chemical composition causes an altered electrical conductivity of said recording medium.
 8. The method according to claim 7, wherein altering said electrical conductivity causes an altered electron transport property of said recording medium.
 9. The method according to claim 1, wherein altering said chemical composition causes an altered thermal conductivity of said recording medium.
 10. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: depositing said recording medium on a substrate.
 11. The method according to claim 1, wherein said selectively thermally coupling comprises selectively directing an incident thermal wave from said heat source to said recording medium to form a direct thermal coupling between said heat source and said recording medium.
 12. The method according to claim 1, wherein said medium comprises cobalt and chromium.
 13. The method according to claim 1, wherein said substrate comprises one of glass, silicon, quartz, sapphire, AlMg and a ceramic substrate.
 14. The method according to claim 1, wherein said heat source comprises one of a near-field thermal probe and a nanoheater.
 15. The method according to claim 1, wherein said heat source physically contacts said recording medium.
 16. The method according to claim 1, wherein said heat source is physically separated from said recording medium.
 17. The method according to claim 1, wherein said chemical composition is altered by one of interfacial mixing, interfacial reactions, selective oxidation, structural relaxation, phase segregation and phase change.
 18. The method according to claim 1, wherein altering said chemical composition transforms said medium from a paramagnetic medium to a ferromagnetic medium.
 19. The method according to claim 1, wherein altering said chemical composition transforms said medium from a ferromagnetic medium to a paramagnetic medium.
 20. The method according to claim 1, wherein altering said chemical composition alters a magnetic axis orientation of said medium.
 21. The method according to claim 1, wherein altering said chemical composition reduces at least one of magnetization and coercivity of said medium.
 22. The method according to claim 1, wherein said selectively thermally coupling comprises selective near-field radiative coupling of blackbody radiation from said heat source to said recording medium.
 23. The method according to claim 1, wherein said medium comprises Co_(x)Cr_(1-x), where x is in a range from 0.63 to 0.75.
 24. The method according to claim 1, wherein thermal energy is transferred to said medium by conductive heating.
 25. The method according to claim 1, wherein thermal energy is transferred to said medium by radiative heating.
 26. An apparatus for patterning a recording medium, comprising: a heat source for generating and directing an incident thermal wave to a recording medium, said thermal wave altering a chemical composition of a recording medium; and a controller for coordinating a mutual position of said incident thermal wave and said recording medium so as to thermally couple said heat source and said recording medium.
 27. The apparatus according to claim 26, wherein said heat source comprises: a heating plate for developing a thermal energy field which couples said heat source to said recording medium; and a heat sink connected to said heating plate.
 28. The apparatus according to claim 27, wherein said heating plate comprises a tip for concentrating and directing a thermal energy.
 29. The apparatus according to claim 27, further comprising: an optical waveguide coupled to said heat sink, for carrying a focused laser beam.
 30. The apparatus according to claim 29, wherein said optical waveguide comprises an optical fiber.
 31. The apparatus according to claim 29, wherein said optical waveguide comprises a planar optical waveguide.
 32. The apparatus according to claim 27, further comprising: a resistive heating element thermally coupled to said heat sink.
 33. The apparatus according to claim 26, wherein said heat source comprises an atomic force microscope probe.
 34. The apparatus according to claim 26, wherein said heat source comprises one of a nanoheater and a near-field thermal probe.
 35. The apparatus according to claim 26, wherein said controller coordinates said mutual position of said incident thermal wave and said recording medium to induce a direct thermal coupling that subsumes at least one portion of a thermal near-field.
 36. A read/write head assembly, comprising: a read/write head; a heat source connected to said read/write head for generating and directing an incident thermal wave to a recording medium, said thermal wave altering a chemical composition of a recording medium; and a controller for coordinating a mutual position of said incident thermal wave and said recording medium so as to thermally couple said heat source and said recording medium.
 37. The read/write head assembly according to claim 36, wherein heat source comprises one of a nanoheater and a near field thermal probe.
 38. The read/write head assembly according to claim 36, wherein said chemical composition is altered according to a predetermined pattern, and wherein said heat source patterns said recording medium during a read/write operation of said read/write head assembly.
 39. A patterned recording medium, comprising: a substrate; and a single layer medium formed on said substrate having a portion which has been patterned by altering a chemical composition of said medium using selective thermal coupling.
 40. A method for manufacturing a patterned magnetic disk, comprising: depositing a recording medium on a substrate; selectively thermally coupling said recording medium and a heat source so as to alter a chemical composition of said recording medium, and depositing a protective coating on said recording medium.
 41. A programmable storage medium tangibly embodying a program of machine-readable instructions executable by a digital processing apparatus to perform a method for patterning a recording medium, said method comprising: selectively thermally coupling said recording medium and a heat source to alter a chemical composition of said recording medium. 